Shannon's Library

LET’S GET EXCITED ABOUT THIS BOOK!

From her attic in the Arizona mountains, Myra Malone blogs about a dollhouse mansion that captivates thousands of readers worldwide. Myra herself is tethered to the Mansion by mysteries she doesn’t understand – rooms that appear and disappear overnight, music that plays in its corridors. Across the country in Virginia, Alex Rakes encounters two Mansion fans trying to re-create a room. The pair shows him the Minuscule Mansion, and Alex is shocked to recognize a reflection of his own life mirrored back to him in minute scale. The room is his own bedroom, and the Mansion is his family’s home. Searching for answers, Alex begins corresponding with Myra. Together, the two unwind the lonely paths of their twin worlds and trace the stories that entwine them, setting the stage for a meeting rooted in loss but defined by love.

Shannon’s Rating — PG-13

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LET’S TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK!

“Once upon a time, there was a house.”

When I was 6 years old, Santa gave me the BEST Christmas present ever…A DOLLHOUSE! I eventually realized that Santa had enlisted helpers from my own family to make this dream of mine come true. My dad built the house, and my mom decorated it. And it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen! Each room was unique with different wallpaper, carpet and furnishings. As the years went by, we would slowly add to the house. My mom and I would make special trips to a store in Salt Lake City that specialized in dollhouse furniture. I vividly remember this store. I remember the hours I would spend there looking at all the delicate, tiny things for dollhouses and agonizing over the decision of what to bring home. My mom would tell me over and over that these items were precious (meaning expensive!), and I could only get one or two things at a time, on very special occasions. But oh, what a treat when I would bring home a new bedroom dresser or new dining room chairs or a new tea set to make my house all the more fancy! This dollhouse of mine stayed with me until I had long outgrown the desire to play with dolls. It remained in my room my entire childhood and teenage years. I so wish I still had this dollhouse today. But over the years it fell into disrepair. The wallpaper peeled away, most of the furniture was broken and the structure itself was barely holding together. Such is often the case with well-loved toys. I still remember the anguishing decision as an adult to finally throw it all away. My memories of this dollhouse, however, will stay with me always!

I am certain my nostalgic love of that childhood dollhouse influenced my joyful feelings towards “The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone,” by Audrey Burges. As much as I loved my humble dollhouse, just think how much I would have loved a gigantic mansion like the one in this novel! And, oh my gosh, what if it had been magic, like Myra’s? How exciting would it have been to wake up in the morning to mysterious music playing from the piano, books open in the library ready to be read and new rooms appearing and disappearing overnight! Ugh. My childhood heart wants to explode just imagining it!!!

I pictured the Minuscule Mansion to look kind of like Monica’s dollhouse in this episode of Friends… (And Myra would have agreed with Monica, not Pheobe, in this situation. A dollhouse is NOT to be played with. It is NOT a toy. In fact, it’s not a dollhouse at all. It’s a mansion! “Do you see any dolls in it?”)

So, yes, this is a novel about a Minuscule Mansion. But it is also a character driven book with a lot of heart. It is a story of friendships. A story of first, romantic loves. A story of family discord and forgiveness. A story of motherly and grandmotherly devotion. It is a story of crippling fears and new-found courage. And, finally, it is a story with just a touch of magic… because doesn’t a touch of magic make all stories a little bit better!?

In fact, my one critique of the novel is that I actually wanted more of the magic. Some aspects of the magical side of the story felt a little discombobulated and unclear. Even by the end I was still a bit confused about the whole magical situation. But, overall, it was a cute story and right up my alley. Will you enjoy this book even if you didn’t grow up with a childhood passion for your dollhouse? I think so! Read it and let me know!